President Barack Obama is continuing a bus tour of the U.S. Midwest to explain his economic policy, as he pushes back against criticism that he is not doing enough to spur the economy and address high unemployment.Mr. Obama is set to attend a rural economic forum Tuesday in the state of Iowa, a day after speaking with residents there and in the state of Minnesota.The president said Monday he plans to present Congress with a plan to boost the nation's ailing economy when lawmakers return to work next month. Mr. Obama has called for Congress to extend payroll tax cuts, act on trade bills and pass measures to create construction jobs.
Iowa has been a political focus in recent days, following a Saturday poll that showed the state's favorites among Republican presidential candidates for next year's election.Republicans say Mr. Obama is doing little to pump life into the ailing U.S. economy, and have criticized him for ballooning U.S. deficits.